1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a limb movement exercising and training apparatus, and more particularly, to an apparatus for exercising or training arm, leg and body muscles for emulating specific athletic movements or for physical therapy activities.
2. Description of Related Art
Various exercising devices for exercising body and limb, e.g., leg or arm, muscles are known in the art. For example, typical bar-bells or weight bars have been known and used for quite some time. These devices generally include a set of disk shaped weight members, commonly referred to as free weights, and a bar on which the disk shaped weight members are supported. One can exercise and build muscle tone over a period of time by lifting the bar in various lifting motions.
Other, more sophisticated apparatuses have been developed, including exercise apparatuses which include a cable connected to a vertical rack of weight plates and, through linkage devices, to a bar or handle. The bar or handle can be lifted or pulled resulting in a pulling tension applied to the cable which causes the cable to pull and lift a selected number of weights within the vertical weight rack.
In such known weight-type devices, weights are lifted as a user lifts, pushes, pulls, or otherwise moves a bar or other mechanism. As the weights are lifted, a resistance is felt by the user resulting from gravitational force acting on the weights and countering the users lift or stroke motion. The user must exert an amount of "work" to lift the weight (work being equal to the product of the force acting in the direction of motion and the distance through which it acts). The amount of power required to lift the weight is equal to amount of work per unit of time. It is often beneficial for a weight-type exercising device to provide a greater resistance (and require a greater amount of work or power) during portions of a lift or stroke and a reduced resistance during other portions of the lift or stroke. The greater resistance portions of the lift or stroke can be employed for working certain muscles or working certain portions of muscle movements to a greater degree and to allow the user to concentrate more on building muscle strength. The reduced resistance portions of the lift or stroke can be employed for working certain muscles or portions of muscle extensions at a reduced degree and to allow the user to concentrate more on movement form.
A common problem associated with some typical weight-type devices is that the resistance provided by the weights remains constant throughout the entire lift or stroke. In other devices, the resistance may vary in a preset, unalterable manner over the entire stroke; that is, the points of minimum or maximum resistance remain fixed and are not adjustable. As a result a user is restricted to exercise or train according to the unalterable resistance pattern which was preset by the manufacturer of the exercise apparatus.